The Innovators & Investors Podcast
The Innovators & Investors Podcast: Connecting the Startup Ecosystem. We are on a mission to bridge the gap between founders, investors, and industry leaders across the early-stage ecosystem. By bringing together visionaries from cutting-edge startups, venture capitalists, family offices, angel investors, accelerators, and studios, we offer a platform for sharing invaluable insights, market trends, and first-hand experiences. Whether you’re an entrepreneur navigating the challenges of building a business or an investor seeking opportunities in emerging technologies, our podcast provides a front-row seat to the dynamic world of innovation and investment. Tune in to gain a comprehensive understanding of the startup landscape, stay ahead of the curve, and benefit from the collective wisdom of those shaping the future. Think you'd be a great guest on the show? Apply at https://finstratmgmt.com/innovators-investors-podcast/
Episodes
In this episode of the Innovators and Investors podcast, host Kristian Marquez interviews Katerina Axelson, founder of Tastry.
Katerina shares her journey from aspiring scientist to entrepreneur, highlighting the importance of understanding consumer preferences through chemistry. She discusses the challenges of introducing innovative technology in traditional industries, the significance of iterating products, and the need for a sup...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Nathan Rosenberg, founder and CEO of FarmBlox, to explore how technology is addressing critical labor shortages in agriculture.
Nathan shares the origin story of FarmBlox, highlighting their modular IoT platform designed to automate specialty crop farming tasks such as irrigation monitoring and theft prevention.
The discussion delves int...
In this episode of the Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez speaks with the CEO and Founder of FirmPilot, Jake Soffer.
Jake shares his journey of creating FirmPilot to help law firms with marketing and SEO challenges, inspired by assisting his attorney brother. Jake covers the value of using AI and data-driven strategies, focusing on niche markets, and understanding Google search rankings, and key metrics for su...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Jonathan Lowenhar, founder and managing partner of Enjoy the Work, to explore the challenges founders face as their startups grow.
Jonathan shares his perspective on why successful founders often lose control of their companies, the gap between founding a startup and effectively running one, and how a lack of structured mentorship and tr...
In this episode of the Innovators and Investors podcast, host Kristian Marquez interviews Zach Posner, Co-Founder and Managing Director of The Legal Tech Fund.
They discuss the fund’s investment thesis, focusing on companies transforming the legal industry. Zach also shares insights on their approach to identifying startups, the importance of founder experience, and the evolving landscape of legal technology. He emphasizes the role...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Andrew Duffell, President of Research Park at Florida Atlantic University, to explore how the park fosters innovation and entrepreneurship in South Florida.
They discuss the park’s 40-year history, its unique focus on supporting second-stage companies beyond the typical startup phase, and its role in bridging university research with rea...
In this episode of the Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez speaks with the Founder and CEO of GAGE, Justin Henshaw.
Justin shares his entrepreneurial journey, highlighting his military background and transition into business. He discusses the inspiration behind GAGE, a platform designed to recognize and score the contributions of hourly and shift
workers. The conversation covers the importance of employee ...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Yotam Cohen, co-founder and CEO of Daisy, a technology-driven property management company focused on transforming homeowners associations (HOAs). Yotam shares how a personal frustration with outdated property management inspired him to create an end-to-end platform that simplifies building operations, improves resident satisfaction, and ...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Kevin Lancaster, founder and CEO of Channel Program, to explore the challenges and opportunities within the fragmented IT channel marketplace.
Kevin shares his entrepreneurial journey from founding a government contracting firm to building and exiting a cybersecurity company, ID Agent, highlighting key lessons learned along the way.
The ...
From PhD to CEO: Michael Johnson on Innovation, AI Adoption, and Building NJ’s Unique Venture Studio
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Christian Marquez speaks with Michael Johnson, President of the New Jersey Innovation Institute (NJI).
Michael shares how NJI bridges the gap between academia and industry by accelerating translational research, fostering innovation, and supporting workforce upskilling. He discusses NJI’s unique organizational structure as a separate 501©(3), which enables nimbleness a...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Brian Armstrong, Managing Director of Ensemble Innovation Ventures, to explore the dynamic world of healthcare venture capital.
Brian shares how Ensemble focuses on investments in health tech and tech-enabled services that enhance both patient care and backend operations across healthcare stakeholders including payers, providers, and pha...
Transforming Due Diligence with AI: Wokelo’s Automation of Private Market Research and Risk Analysis
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Sid Masson, co-founder and CEO of Wokelo AI, to explore how their platform is transforming due diligence and research workflows in private equity, venture capital, consulting, and banking.
Sid shares the origins of Wokelo AI, born from firsthand experience with the tedious and error-prone aspects of manual data analysis, and how their ag...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Yehuda Niv, founder and CEO of Spines, an AI-powered publishing platform transforming the traditional book publishing industry.
Yehuda shares how Spines drastically reduces publishing time from months to weeks and cuts costs significantly, making book publishing accessible to more authors. The discussion highlights Spines’ multi-format a...
Reimagining Government Innovation: How Miami-Dade Innovation Authority is Accelerating Tech Adoption
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Christian Marquez sits down with Leanne Buchanan, president and CEO of the Miami-Dade Innovation Authority (MDIA).
Leanne shares how MDIA is transforming government innovation by streamlining procurement and pilot programs to fast-track emerging technologies that improve public services in areas like mobility, housing, healthcare, and sustainability.
They discuss MDIA’s...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Diane Yu, co-founder and CEO of TidalWave, to explore how her company is revolutionizing mortgage origination through AI-powered technology.
Diane shares her journey from engineering roles at major tech firms like DoubleClick and Google to founding Freewheel, which was acquired by Comcast, and ultimately transitioning into fintech with Be...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez welcomes Konstantin Sonkin, CEO of iBrainTech, to explore the cutting-edge intersection of neuroscience, AI, and athletic performance.
Konstantin shares his journey from academic research to deep tech entrepreneurship, focusing on how his company uses brain-computer interface technology to enhance natural intelligence through visualization-based brain t...
In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Danielle D'Agostaro, co-founder and strategic advisor of Alchemist Accelerator and principal partner at WVV Capital.
They explore the unique investment thesis behind WVV, a $100 million fund backed by major corporates like Foxconn, Advocate Health, Northwestern Mutual, and Johnson Controls. Danielle shares her journey from aspiring market...
This is the fourth of four episodes in a special series dedicated to the 2025 NVCA Award Recipients. To learn more about the NVCA and their work in crafting the future of Venture Capital, visit their website at https://nvca.org/.
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In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Matt Schappell, principal investor at Frist Cressey Ventures, to explore the firm’s focused approach...
This is the third of four episodes in a special series dedicated to the 2025 NVCA Award Recipients. To learn more about the NVCA and their work in crafting the future of Venture Capital, visit their website at https://nvca.org/.
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In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with David Rothzeid, principal at Shield Capital and a recent NVCA award recipient.
They explore Shield Capital’...
This is the second of four episodes in a special series dedicated to the 2025 NVCA Award Recipients. To learn more about the NVCA and their work in crafting the future of Venture Capital, visit their website at https://nvca.org/.
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In this episode of The Innovators & Investors Podcast, host Kristian Marquez sits down with Chris Rizik, CEO of Renaissance Venture Capital and recipient of the NVCA’s Venture Vanguard Award.
Chris ...
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